I'm beyond excited for the fight. Sonnen I'm sure has improved since his last fight....I'm also sure his E:T levels will be legit this time as he can't afford another year suspension...beyond that in case people missed it, Silva spent the entire fight last time working for wrist control setting up the triangle he finished Chael with. If Chael is lucky Anderson will do the same this time. That being said, I have seen a good bit of Chael's training camp via blogs obviously and he looks pretty solid too, so I am excited for the fight. I think Anderson will demolish Chael this time, but if he gets beaten I wouldn't be mad at anybody for throwing me an, "I told you so."

I don't like Silva but ill give him his props on the standup aspect of his game. The hole in his game has always been on the ground.

What hole? Anderson Silva's hole is infinitesimal if it is there, and everybody that has got him to the ground since he began streaking in the UFC has found that just because the fight hits the floor does not mean the fight is done.

Posted by Bubbles

but those insults were made last year. It's one thing to come out publicly a couple weeks later, but Chael has been doing this for over 2 years now. I'm a little skeptical about it

He probably does not have as much trollface as Sonnen. Actually, he certainly does not. I believe the guy that tries to stay away from this sort of stuff more than the guy that makes a living doing it.

Never said that hole was big.

Also never said the fight would be over once it got to the ground

The guy got beat up on by sonnen before the triangle on the ground.

The guy got subbed by ryo on the ground

The guy was in a bad spot against lutter on the ground.

Yes we know he won those fights minus the ryo fight but if he's ever been close to getting beat its been on the ground.

Anderson probably has worked on his take down defense but it won't be enough to prevent it.

Sonnen has probably worked on his submission defense and it should help tremendously.

However, none of that significantly matters IMO. Anderson will be using a lot more movements in this fight. He is usually a counter striker but for this fight, you can throw that out the window. Expect Anderson to move a lot and be more aggressive than usual in his offense. (key point here) The key to beating Sonnen is not to defend the take downs; it is to fire at will when the fight is on its feet and I expect Anderson to do just that which is why I am fearful for Sonnen.

For Anderson to increase his chances of winning, he needs to create moments of precipice. It is - get taken down or knock out Chael. There is really no other way around it. The likelihood of Anderson winning by decision is slim to none. He needs a knock out to win and he has all the tools to do so - with his movement, footwork, and precise striking.

For Chael to win, he needs to do exactly what he did before and just stay out of harms way i.e. submissions and power strikes. He needs to be relentless but also cautious in his approach as he did the last time. I would even recommend Chael to press Anderson against the cage to make Anderson expend more energy. Taking Anderson down is always a good thing for scoring purposes but Anderson doesn't really expend much energy when he is on the bottom. He basically just lays there and rest - so to speak.

This fight will be interesting to see how it plays out. I don't think either fighter will be looking to win on points. Expect Chael to finish the fight by either submission or ground and pound. Expect Silva to look for the knock out every time the fight is on its feet.

Let me just add one more thing: IMO, this fight has a lot to do with who flinches first - not necessarily break - just flinch.

Also, expect Anderson to be using a lot more kicks in this fight. I can see Anderson using one of my all time favorite kicks which I have never seen implemented in competition. This is the same kick I have been practicing as a youth. You lightly kick the inside leg and then you bring it up super fast for a side kick to the face.

Last edited 6/26/12 3:28PM server time by KungFuMasterEdit note/reason: n/a

The thing about this fight is I'm honestly torn on who I want to win. I'm picking Silva because he's a Badass but with that being said I don't like the guy. I don't like his shit fights against Leites or Maia and I was cheering my ass off their 1st fight cuz I wanted someone,anyone, to beat him. That guy was almost someone from Oregon, a dude from my local MMA powerhouse Team Quest. But then Chael lost and started his bigotry laced smear campaign and I fell off his bandwagon. At first it was funny but then it got old and played out. I love how he fights, always coming forward with the pace we expect from Team Quest fighters and he's not afraid of Silva one bit. I still want someone to takeout Anderson but I'm not sure I want that guy to be Chael.